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Article Suggests That D.C. is America's New "Second City"

According to the City Journal, D.C. is on the rise. Let the Journal tell it, it's not New York and may never be, but it's not too far behind. Urban affairs analyst Aaron Renn says that D.C.'s population and economic growth over the past decade have it ahead of both Chicago and Los Angeles. Renn says that this can be credited to expansions in federal spending.

Renn says that D.C. is rapidly becoming America's "new Second City," but he isn't too happy about it. In addition to questioning "whether that’s a good thing for America," he calls D.C. "an artificial capital." Here's how he broke down the District:

Rents are high, with lower-cost apartments disappearing rapidly as investors pay current residents as much as $10,000 to move out so that their apartments can be rented to others at higher rates. In 2011, buoyed by robust demand, builders broke ground on more than 15,000 new apartment units throughout the Washington region. “Much of the building is taking place in the District,” noted the Washington Post, adding that “the vast majority are ‘Class A’ units aimed at young professionals eager to live in walkable communities near shopping and public transportation.”

He alleges that the stronger D.C. becomes, the weaker America gets:

Washington’s fortunes and America’s are increasingly at odds. The region is prospering because it’s becoming something that would have horrified the Founders: an imperial capital on the Potomac.